Empowering course participants following a systemic reality check-in by Martin Richards
Introduction
This is the third in a series of blogs that examines the ways in which a coach-educator manages the external and internal struggles that arise from taking on challenging educational assignments.
My name is Martin and I write about my personal experiences as an educator. In my books, I use an imaginary heroic self to rewrite history. The reflective, rewriting process is enjoyable and rewarding in equal measure. I recommend a similar process when I mentor other trainers and coaches on their processes, by asking questions like, “Now that you know what you know today, how would you have done it?”
My hope is that you will reflect upon your teaching and / or coaching practice and find inspiration in this story for how you can make even more of the courses you lead.
In the previous blog, I described an outline of how I want to engage with supporting the reintegration of unemployed people into the IT-workforce. My previous experience as an immigrant and a Job Coach has guided me in the design of a 3-day social skills course. I aim to make authentic connections between the participants, develop trusting relationships between them and find the informal leaders. For all, I aim to increase their self-awareness and self-confidence, and towards the end of the course, leverage the empowered relationships so that they can collaborate during the upcoming 3-month IT course. I aim to achieve all of that without becoming their leader, because I want the informal leaders to take over after three days.
Although firmly based on personally lived experience, the characters in this story are fictional. The company Ikon does not exist, although many similar ones do.
In this blog, I will take us through the first meetings with the participants. In order to set the scene, I remind you of the poem in the first blog:
A group of people, or so it seems,
say the local government, needs
assistance from drowning, and to be
saved from the unemployment sea.
Skill set training, a hill to climb.
Hope recovered, and clearer minds.
And bring together in moving rhyme
a disparate group, by next lunchtime.
The Start up Meeting: The ‘pedagogic’ message to the adult participants
The participants were arriving one by one at Ikon, the IT company where they will soon be studying for three months in the hopes of qualifying for employment after a prolonged break. I had arrived at Ikon earlier, filled up my coffee cup and was in the room watching them arrive like lost children on their first day at school. From influences in their attire, you could guess they were from different cultures, Africa, Asia, Syria, Europe and Scandinavia. They were of all ages from mid-twenties to mid-fifties. Each participant had been checked in at Reception on arrival and had wound their way along the grey corridors to the door marked “EnTrance” that was wedged open for them. They found their seats among the rows lined up in front of the white projector screen and podium.
When I entered the clinically clean and organised room, I had acknowledged the Course Organiser Helen with a generous smile, but it only half-covered my uncertainty regarding the outcome of this assignment. I decided to sit down on the front-row seat nearest the door. I busied myself with writing stuff in my notebook. Just some scribbles. I would look at them later and interpret what they meant.
Helen was elegantly playing her role as Hostess, greeting the participants as they came in, waving them to where they could sit. She was waiting for Emeline Champion, from the local government-run employment agency. Helen had earlier received Emeline’s text that she was running late.
At the coffee machine, Daryl stood speaking with Fatima Abernathy, the representative from EnTrance, the independent recruitment specialist agency that was helping out with this assignment. The Ikon stage was set.
Daryl, on lookout, noticed that Emeline had arrived. He brought her and Fatima into the room and they stood at the front next to Helen and a little behind her. They listened politely while Emeline and Helen conferred for a moment and it was decided that Helen should check that everyone had arrived before Emeline gave her introductory speech.
Helen placed the participant’s attendance list on the podium, took out a pencil and waved it at the participants. They hushed. Helen intoned:
As I call your name, please say you’re here
Make sure I see you in the rear
No need to stand up, I see you dear
Just raise your hand, so that we’re clear
That is excellent. We are all here
Nobody’s missing, raise a cheer!
There is a fact, to which we adhere
Absence is not permitted here
From time to time, as they heard each others’ familiar names they turned to face each other, waved and made eye contact to acknowledge that they were from the same country of origin. As an immigrant, I know what it's like to meet someone from my country. They are like family. People whom I might not speak to at home, quickly seem to be my best friends here in this foreign country. Even after three decades of living abroad, it feels the same. Recognition, familiarity, ease of understanding and connection. Brothers and sisters. But not for real. I could imagine that it was the same for the participants as they heard familiar names.
I could almost hear their hearts beating faster at the excitement of connection on this first day back at school. Their eyes had already widened at what this might mean for them - another chance at being employed. I recalled my earlier Job Coaching clients telling me that after years of self-doubt, guilt and deepening sadness from being unemployed, the relief of new opportunities was both scary and most welcome. When they heard Helen’s words ‘absence is not permitted’ their eyes fixed for a moment on her face, but soon their gaze relaxed as Helen’s smile ended her speech and she turned to Emiline.
My scribbles made heavy spirals and lines.
Turning to Emeline, Helen introduced her, “This is Emeline Champion, the course sponsor. She is from the local government employment agency. It is they who are paying for this course.”
Emeline waved a finger at the participants. She began:
You need to be here every day
They get the course paid in that way
No matter what the others may say
Illness, is the one exception.
Employees pay a fortune to be
educated here in IT
You receive all the training for free
Make the best of this, your best chance.
The participants’ bowed their heads at the words ‘best chance’ and their eyes sought out the floor. Nobody was looking at Emeline any more.
My scribbles made heavier spirals and dots.
Helen publicly thanked Emeline who now had to leave this meeting for other pressing business. With a last reminder to the participants to ‘make the best of this’, Helen introduced the course leader, Daryl.
Daryl claimed his place in front of the projection screen, picked up the wooden pointer, outstretched his arms in warm greeting and began:
Welcome everyone, our IT guests
We start off easy with some tests
to decide your study assignments
Do your best, then once more, we test.
With your teachers, class lessons are done
Week by week learn some theorem
Meetings with your tutors, one by one
Your work assignments, do and done.
You need to realise, for you see
get to the work quick, is easy
This course is self-paced, by you, not me
YOU must complete your assignments.
We are all looking forward to see
how you cope with modern IT
Collaboration is A to Z
Need help? Ask each other, not me.
At first, the participants' faces glowed in the warmth of Daryl’s welcome. His generous smile spread from mouth to mouth around the room like honey. But towards the end, they were shaking their heads and giving each other glances like rabbits caught in traffic. At the sound of his words, Need help? Ask each other, not me their mouths ate lemons as the reality of their situation became clear in the approaching collaboration headlights.
"What was going on here?" asked my inner vocie.
My memories of working with job coaching reminded me of what the job-seekers had told me, following years of being isolated from other people, living at home not going to work, the prospect of motivating themselves would be struggle enough. Working with others was a huge challenge, one that would require them to trust each other, in a world that had seemingly shunned them for three years.
My scribbles became heavier and thicker spirals and dots.
Daryl then passed the pointer to Fatima Abernathy, the recruiter who would guide the participants back into the world of employment. She too held onto the pointer, and waved the sharp end of it at the participants, counting them off one by one. She told them:
Acknowledging your recent hard times
to leave the unemployment lines
Working hard here to reach for your prime,
is not anyone’s pantomime.
You work here. Simultaneously
we work to find, in months just three
a position you best suited be
their newest IT employee.
Collaboration as you have heard
Is not simply a faddish word
It makes a difference to be spurred
by your fellow unemployees.
We wish you luck and hope to see
A major difference in your IT
Certification will come and we
will see your certification.
At the start of this speech, the participants winced at the pointed end of the stick, turned their faces down to face the floor and hunched their backs. At the end, they no longer sought out each other’s eyes. They focused on the floor. They had stopped listening from the overload of emotions.
I was overloaded too. My scribbles ceased.
Reflecting on empowerment
Helen thanked Fatima and invited Daryl to show everybody where they could get a lovely cup of tea or coffee and partake of the traditional Ikon welcome gift, a cake.
The participants filed out, looking wild-eyed at each other as they passed me on their way out of the room, heading for tea and cake. Some sought the attention of others with familiar names and appearances, offers of conversation over coffee were made. There was plenty to discuss.
I turned down Helen’s offer of a cup of coffee. She would be busy talking with Fatima for a while anyway. I needed time to settle my feelings and gather my thoughts. It was I who would be speaking to the group next.
I pondered about what I had just heard:
They welcome them to this IT farm
They mean so well, yet do much harm
With open hearts as well as arms
And scare the holy shit out of them
Now they have got me doing it. Speaking in rhyme. I laughed at myself.
I recalled Helen’s words: No need to stand up, I see you dear. If they want to stand up and be seen, let them, welcome their courage. And I hope I can refrain from calling people 'dear'.
Just raise your hand, so that we’re clear. Oh that’s too schoolma’mish and condescending, no! We will have to find another way of taking turns, especially when it comes to conversations that get heated.
And Emeline’s comment: Make the best of this, your best chance. By now, my frustration at the wealth of subtle insults that had been casually thrown at the participants was getting to me. My breathing shallowed and my stomach tightened. I was getting angry. They already have made the best of this so far. They came here today. They know this is their best chance. "And telling them that does no good at all. It does not engage them, at all", I imagined telling Emeline.
Daryl had told them: Need help? Ask each other, not me. At least this is true, I conferred with Daryl as if he were in the room, "But it could have been delivered in another way, so that they felt they have come to the decision themselves and own it. In that way they would be likely to remember and follow it."
Fatima’s words: Working hard here to reach for your prime, is not anyone’s pantomime. What. Was. That? Had she accused them of faking it? I wondered where that idea had come from. "I'm not going there. Not part of this assignment!" I told the room.
I opened my journal. I needed to calm myself down. To prepare, I sketched in my journal how the participants' empowerment could proceed: Environment > Behaviours > Capabilities > Values > Identity > Mission, I recalled from Robert Dilts' Change Levels[1].
I would start with a physical environment that supported activities that would get them talking and connecting with each other. And we would need to have space to move around, so we could meet as many different people in the group as possible today. The room was filled with chairs and tables arranged in rows in front of the podium where the presenter had stood.
The traditional setup of chairs and tables had the effect of locking people into a passive, receptive state. Sitting on chairs, knees bent, elbows on tables, heads turned to the speaker at the front of the room. It was almost as though it was designed to minimise physical movement and increase attention on one person. It was difficult for people sitting in these chairs to speak to anyone other than those sitting to their left or right. The room layout was minimising the interaction between them.
The room was going to get a makeover!
As I folded away the tables and started to move the chairs, and despite the light from the sun filtering through the slitted window shades, I could still sense a waft of smoke from the brimstone presentations from earlier. It was important, for the success of this social skills course, to address what had happened in the presentations. I would do something to empty out the negativity and allow space for something positive to grow. I decided that I would not feed the negativity, it would be enough to mention it, then pause and not respond to whatever came up. Let it fade. Give it no air, until there were signs of positivity, then I would pour on the energy. Get them up and moving. When I had finished sketching, I closed the journal.
Now I knew what I was going to do: Pause and refrain … and then, intentionally connect.
When the participants returned, in twos and threes, still deep in conversation, they entered a different environment from what had been in this room before. The tables were gone. The window blinds were open to the sun which streamed onto the floor. The chairs were now arranged in a large circle that almost filled the room. I sat in the front seat, scribbling away in my journal much as I had been doing during the earlier presentations. I nodded and smiled generously to them, making eye contact, as they came in, but said nothing.
The participants seated themselves next to people they had just met. Small connections had already been made. From their smiles and animated chatter, I could guess that confidence was being regained and hope was gradually returning.
I waited, for minute upon minute, allowing the remaining smoke of negative emotions from the earlier presentations to fade away, giving time for the participants' curiosity to awaken. I sat calmly and accessed my deep confidence in my ability to lead this group,
"Do nothing. Simply BE", I reminded myself, and waited for a sign that everyone had settled into this new space.
The moment came. One by one, and at last everyone, sitting in our large circle was looking at me in patient, silent wide-eyed curiosity about what was going to happen next.
I spoke slowly and deliberately, “OK. So we heard from the course organiser, Helen.” I paused to allow memories of her schoolteacher ways to resurface and ebb away, “We heard from the sponsor Emeline,” I paused again so the sharpness of her finger-pointing could be recalled, blunted and forgotten, “and the recruiter Fatima,” I paused yet again, so that any memories of her calling for collaboration and naming certification could ease. Slowing my pace, I gave the last announcement, “and the course leader, Daryl.” I waited until their reactions - to him saying to ask each other for help - to calm down. When the room had settled again, I introduced myself, “My task is to get you ready for the IT course. We have three sessions, one today after lunch, all day tomorrow and one more half day this week.”
The mood in the room lightened as though the sun had started shining brighter.
"Perhaps this was going to be good after all?", my inner voice wondered.
I asked the group, “Would it be OK with you if I lead this session from here to lunch?” I waited for a reply. I received a silent one, so I stepped in to lead, “I suggest we do some fun activities to speed up the getting to know each other process.” I waved the attendance list, “I have your names here, but games are more fun, and effective.” I tossed the list aside.
“To get to know each other, we can start by learning each other’s names and sharing a little about ourselves. Does that sound reasonable?" I paused, presumed agreement and continued leading, "The first game is called 'My Name is… and I like…' and what you do is say your name and one thing that you like AND, since this is a game, the thing you say you like must begin with the same letter as your first name."
I waited for the natural leader to speak up. He said his name and what he liked. I pointed to the person on his left, and indicated with a slight nod and a smile that it was her turn to speak. She told the group her name and what she liked. The pattern of turn-taking had been established, the word went slowly around the circle. From time to time, I interrupted and asked, "Who else likes…" using the likes that had been shared, getting a couple of responses before allowing the turn-taking to continue from where I had interrupted. In this way, I established that I was in control of the turn-taking.
Completing the circle, we moved to the second game. "This game is called 'His name is… , and My name is …'. You need to remember the names of the people before you." I showed, using my hands, which people to include, "In this first round, you name the person next to you and yourself." I chose a different person to start this game. I chose the person to my right whom I guessed would remember my name. She didn't, so I politely introduced myself and what I liked, and she repeated it back to the group, added her name and what she liked.
"What did you notice there?" my inner voice asked.
I replied silently, "We showed that being forgetful and making mistakes is OK."
We heard from three people in the group before the game naturally evolved. One participant named the three people next to them, including what they liked. The game evolved again when one participant was able to name six people next to them (or was it seven?). The game ended abruptly in applause, when one participant gave the names and likes of each person in the group, in order, and at random. Gasps and laughter testified to our amazement.
"What did you notice there?" my inner voice asked.
"We just revealed which participants are quick learners, and which are not." I told myself.
"How are we doing for time?" I asked the group, looking at my wrist where a watch would have been had I worn one. "I think we have time for one more game before lunch."
Assuming that I had permission, and keeping an eye on how this landed with the participants, I described the game, "This game is called 'Three Things in Common'. In your seats, turn to the person next to you, talk with them and find out three things you have in common. You can begin with what you like and what you don't like."
There was no pause. Pairs were formed. Conversations started. I watched with increasing pride and hope blossoming in my chest as the quickest participants reached out to the slower ones and got them talking. Smiles were shared and chatter ensued. The sun shone brightly. The numbing effect of the previous arrangement of tables and chairs had been erased. The chairs were being moved to bring participants closer to each other.
"Let them talk," encouraged my inner voice. "Do nothing, just be and let them find each other and themselves."
I looked where my watch would be, my inner clock kept good time. This hour was ticking away fast. I checked in with the feeling in the room. There was no whiff of smoke. There was sunlight between them, they were sitting in a large untidy circle, holding conversations and eye contact in pairs.
"This is cosy," my inner self praised. "Well done. This activity alone has made a difference to their day. They have found friends to share their experiences with."
"And we are not done yet. If they are going to succeed on the IT course, they need to collaborate across the whole group." I began to see the whole course playing out before me. "It's a good start." I told myself.
In the midst of the cosy conversations, I put on my announcer voice, stood up and boomed, "Ladies and Gentlemen. It is lunchtime!" The conversations were interrupted. I added, "Lunch is served at local restaurants and cafes. I suggest that you go with the people you have met today and continue getting to know each other over lunch. We meet back here in one hour."
My main points of this blog are:
Room layout is the foundation of the environment - chairs set out in a circle suggests collaboration, openness and equality
To include different leadership styles, alternate between asking permission to lead and assuming that you have permission to lead
Turn-taking is more natural in a circle
There is no need to focus on the details of what the participants are saying to each other. I focus on and manage my own process as leader
Not judging forgetfulness and mistakes is empowering
Natural leaders emerge, and they are key to the success of collaboration
In the next blog, I will share what happened after lunchtime, which activities we used and why. I will also share what happened, how resistance and challenges are a natural part of the evolution of learning activities.
Connect with Martin Richards at Linkedin
An author and inspirational speaker in secondary schools, Martin Richards, is an experienced educator and facilitator who began teaching Mathematics over 30 years ago where he applied a 'coach approach' to teaching. He is currently a coach and mentor for teachers, course leaders and coaches in Scandinavia and is passionate about connecting teacher’s purpose with the greater Educational Aims.
Reference
[1] “From Coach to Awakener”, by Robert Dilts
